This Call is closed. See all the Winners and Finalists here.
Calling All Street Photographers!
Top Awards
- Exhibition in New York
- Cash grants of $10,000
- Winning Series published on LensCulture
- Featured at international photo festivals
Sadie Quarrier is the Deputy Director of Photography for National Geographic where she manages a team of 19 photo editors and oversees the assignment, production, and acquisition of photography across print and digital platforms. She provides journalistic insight and editorial guidance on the development of visual storytelling across platforms.
Previously she was Deputy Director of Mobile Storytelling where she oversaw producers creating engaging, mobile–first stories and videos. From 2002-2019, Sadie was a Sr. Photo Editor at National Geographic magazine where she was responsible for producing, managing, and editing 20+ stories/year. She was twice a finalist for Visual Editor of the Year by Pictures of the Year International (POYi). Sadie has traveled around the world on assignments and teaching National Geographic Photo Camps. Her career started at National Geographic in 1992.
Paul Schiek is the founder of TBW Books, an independent photo book publisher based in Oakland, California. He is also the director of Workshop de Allende, a photographic arts workshop based in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where recent workshop sessions have been led by Curran Hatleberg, Juan Brenner, Jim Goldberg, Alessandra Sanguinetti, Mark Steinmetz, and Irina Rozovsky.
Gulnara Lyabib Samoilova is a photographer, author, and founder of Women Street Photographers. With 40 years’ combined experience as a documentary and street photographer, artist, darkroom printer, photojournalist, and photo editor, Samoilova transformed the successful Instagram account @WomenStreetPhotographers into a global platform. She has launched a website, traveling exhibitions, artist residency, inspirational film series, and photography book, Women Street Photographers (Prestel, 2021). A former Associated Press photojournalist, Samoilova received national and international awards for her iconic photographs of September 11, including first prize in the World Press Photo competition. She holds a certificate in creative practices from the International Center of Photography in New York City and a diploma in photography from Moscow Polytech College. Samoilova lives and works in New York City.
Enrico Stefanelli is the founder and artistic director of Photolux Festival, the biennial of photography in Lucca, Italy. He has curated several exhibitions including: Tim Hetherington, Jan Saudek, Horst P. Horst, VII Agency, Nobuyoshy Araki, Boris Mikhailov and David Douglas Duncan. From 2010 to 2017, he was the Italian curator of the European Photo Exhibition Award. Enrico is a photographer and journalist and teaches photography in workshops. He has written articles and contributions on photography for several catalogs, books and magazines. He participates in portfolio reviews around the world, serves on international photography juries, and is a member of the nominating committee for the Joop Swart Masterclass at World Press Photo. He is also the nominator for the Leica Oskar Barnack Award and Prix Pictet.
Marina Paulenka is the founding Director of Exhibitions at Fotografiska Berlin, where she is responsible for the museum’s exhibition strategy, artistic vision and affairs, and program. Fotografiska is the contemporary museum for photography, arts and culture with the vision to provide one of the most beautiful stages that Berlin has to offer for both established artists and up-and-coming talents on the one hand, as well as the internationally acclaimed community of creatives in Berlin on the other. Paulenka has 15 years of experience in artistic direction, curating, education, leadership, management and development in culture and art institutions and organizations, as well as her own artistic practice.
She was the Artistic Director of UNSEEN Foundation and UNSEEN, an Amsterdam-based platform for contemporary photography that presents the latest developments in photography and amplifies the careers of boundary-pushing artists. Before her role at Unseen, she worked as Artistic Director and Curator of the Organ Vida International Photography Festival, the leading institution for contemporary photography in Croatia. Paulenka is a member of the Creative Committee at the Bristol Photo Festival, a guest curator at FUTURES Photography, and a keynote curator for the FORMAT21 International Photography Festival. She is the recipient of the Lucie Awards 2018 for the best curator/ exhibition of the year for the “Engaged, Active, Aware: Women Perspectives Now” exhibition.
Jim Casper is the editor-in-chief of LensCulture, one of the leading online destinations to discover new contemporary photography from around the world. As an active member in the contemporary photography world, Casper loves to meet with photographers and talk about photography. He curates art exhibitions, publishes books, conducts workshops, serves as an international juror, nominates photographers for key awards, and is an advisor to arts and education organizations.
Exhibition in New York!
Winning photographers will be exhibited at a gallery in New York during The Photography Show, the eminent photo fair that brings together hundreds of galleries, publishers and collectors, as well as an ambitious program of exhibitions, conversations, artist book signings and curated fair events.
An opening reception will be held for LensCulture artists, invited media, photo editors and industry insiders for a night of art appreciation and networking during New York’s largest international art fair dedicated to photography.
Buy a good pair of comfortable shoes, have a camera around your neck at all times, keep your elbows in, be patient, optimistic and don’t forget to smile.”
More Awards & Benefits
Winning Series Published on LensCulture
First, second and third place winners in the Series category will have their work published on LensCulture. Benefitting from LensCulture’s high search rankings and traffic to the site, our features offer significant ongoing exposure for your work.
Featured at International Photo Festivals
Select works will be screened at photo festivals and events worldwide. In the past, our winners, finalists, and jurors’ picks were screened at festivals in the US, the UK, Italy, France, Spain, Japan, The Netherlands, Australia, Malaysia, Hungary, Serbia, and more.
Visibility With Industry Insiders & Creative Professionals
All it takes is one set of eyes to change the course of your career. If our jury ranks your submission highly, you will be included in LensCulture Discoveries, our directory of top-rated photographers. We provide this directory to key decision-makers including editors, book publishers, gallery owners, festival directors, creative directors, curators, and online media publishers.
Permanent Exhibition in LensCulture Online Gallery
LensCulture has become a key resource for discovering new photography work all over the world. All winners of this award will be prominently featured in the permanent online gallery on our site.
International Press Exposure
Award winners receive press coverage in publications and media outlets around the world — the kind of exposure that can lead to viral, global recognition of your work. Winners, finalists and selected entrants have been featured in major publications including BBC, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Internazionale, VICE, The Times of London, Huffington Post, Spiegel Online, The British Journal of Photography, and The Telegraph.
Be sure to check out our latest feature in The Guardian, a beautiful image gallery sharing the work of the 2022 LensCulture Street Photography Award winners with the world.
Cash Awards & Recognition
Series Prize Winners
Single Image Prize Winners
Jurors' Picks
25 Finalists
Benefits for All Who Enter
Benefits | 6 Winners | 6 Jurors' picks | 25 Finalists | Editors‘ Picks(1) | Every Entrant |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
$10,000 in Cash Awards | ⬤ | ||||
Winning Series Published on LensCulture(2) | ⬤ | ||||
New York Exhibition | ⬤ | ⬤ | |||
Visibility with LensCulture Insiders | ⬤ | ⬤ | |||
Featured in International Photo Festival Projections | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ||
International Press Exposure | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ||
Massive Exposure to our Global Audience of 3 Million | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | |
LensCulture Portfolio Account(3) | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ |
Opportunity to be in LensCulture Discoveries online directory of top-rated photographers(4) | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ |
Share your Work with the Global Photography Community | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ |
Opportunities for Immediate Exposure | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ | ⬤ |
Get a written review of your work
Enter 5+ single images or a series into this competition and you can add a professional written review of your submission for an additional $25. This is a unique opportunity to receive valuable and specific feedback on your work from one of our experienced industry professionals.
“This review was extraordinarily insightful and immensely helpful. Truly, I didn’t anticipate this level of attention... I am extremely encouraged.” Fred Zafran
Show Us Your Streets
These photography awards are open to all photographers who have a passion for street photography and are able to capture the energy and dynamism of city life in their images. Whether you are a seasoned professional or a newcomer to the genre, we encourage you to submit your work and share your perspective on the world around us.
Open to all types of photography: black & white, mobile photography, analog, conceptual, street portraits, urban, street fashion, road trips, street art, travel, architecture, abstract, poetic.
Be Persistent
Many successful photographers enter the same work in several competitions before they finally win. This is an effective strategy to have your work seen by many different jurors and build your career. Persistence is the key to getting your work seen by influential experts worldwide - it only takes one person to make a positive impact on your creative journey!
Success Stories
For 19 years, LensCulture has been committed to helping photographers of all levels move forward creatively and professionally. In that time, we have heard from hundreds of photographers who were able to achieve breakthroughs in their careers through participation in the LensCulture community.